Friday, October 06, 2006

Running

I am currently trying to define what I want in my life. It's like having a fresh start because I have not felt like I was going anywhere so I can pick any direction that I want. As I reviewed some old goals that I have had from various times in my life and decided which of those goals to begin pursuing in earnest. One of those goals that has been floating in the back of my mind for nearly half my life is to run a marathon one day. As I face this fresh start I thought about that goal and reasoned that you can't just decide one day to run a marathon and then run it the next day. That goal requires that you start training months in advance. With that in mind I finally decided that I might as well start running so that I will be prepared when I am ready to select a marathon and run it.

Having made that decision - today marks my first run. It was raining and cool and generally the kind of weather that nobody runs in unless they are committed to running. In the face of all that I decided that I had better run today or else I would find a new excuse to procrastinate tomorrow. I ran a short route today - three miles. I did slightly better than I had planned (I had planned a very conservative pace) and based on today's run I think I am going to set a goal to finish the marathon, when I get to that point, in four hours.

My younger brother will laugh when he learns that I have decided to take up running. He was an avid runner back in the day - before he rediscovered "the one true sport." Of course he can't complain that I have taken up running again considering that he recently convinced his wife to start running.

4 comments:

Carl Miller said...

As the brother who "rediscovered 'the one, true sport'"; I believe it my duty to say that I never "rediscovered" the sport, I just got a chance to play it more often and improve. I ran because nobody wanted me to play soccer. I came to love running and the way I felt after a race, but it never actually replaced the soccer, it just took away the pain while I couldn't play.
As for my brother who has decided to run, way to go! I convinced my wife to do it because she felt like she had never made a goal and completed it. We now run together while I push the jogger-stroller. So I guess I'm back into running. Anyway, we completed her first 5K this summer and she's started preparation to complete a sprint triathlon. We're pretty excited about that.

Unknown said...

I stand (or possibly jog) corrected.

Anonymous said...

It's been two weeks since the first "run." I'm reminded that the second day of a diet is easier than the first, because most diets don't last more than one days.

How is the marathon training going?

Unknown said...

I had to take a couple of days off this week due to illness, but other than that it's going well.

My times look good and I am enjoying it.